


Complicated Coffee Making

by Absolutely_Barbaric, TriggerHappyChocobo



Category: FFXIV
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, Lil bit of angst mixed in, M/M, Whump, lil bit of sexy times
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-25
Updated: 2018-07-25
Packaged: 2019-06-16 05:51:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,432
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15430383
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Absolutely_Barbaric/pseuds/Absolutely_Barbaric, https://archiveofourown.org/users/TriggerHappyChocobo/pseuds/TriggerHappyChocobo
Summary: Another fic for TriggerHappyChocobo's horribly abused men!Su'kata's coffee making endeavors take a turn for the worse. Then Raravus steps in to fix it, and that takes a turn for the worse. They're not having a very good day.





	1. Chapter 1

“No,  _ no... _ No, please,  _ don’t!” _

 

It required a great deal of effort to take Raravus out of his reading. Particularly when he was so invested in the newest release on his most prized series, and when he’d already built up a tolerance to the ambience noises of Su’kata and his minor mischiefs over plenty of months, it wouldn’t have been a huge feat for him to ignore a unicorn taking a seat next to him as long as it didn’t munch on his paperback.

 

But the yelling from the other side of the room had his attention, and thus he scrambled for a bookmark before making his way into the kitchen quick-paced. There he soon found that the mystery keeping him on the edge of his seat in his novel had nothing on the display before him, as unless Su’kata had seen a ghost and not simply thought it cool instead of terrifying, he looked to be in a losing battle with...nobody.

 

“Did something happen?” He might have been a little bothered to put down his book over nothing if it wasn’t about time he got up and stretched his legs anyway. The last time he had so much as a glass of water was first thing in the morning, and by now it was about time to get dinner started.

 

“I just diffused a  _ bomb _ , that’s what happened.” Su’kata let his head fall back against the cabinet, hair tumbled over his shoulder in dramatic fashion. Raravus cocked an eyebrow at him. He faltered. “...I almost set the coffee maker on fire.”

 

There was the answer. Despite noticing now the unpleasant smoke in the air, Raravus couldn’t keep his smile from all the silliness, nor could Su’kata just seeing it. “Don’t grin at me, I’m pretty sure I could have died.”

 

“From a coffee maker.”

 

“I’m pretty sure,” Su’kata insisted, giggling through his half hearted attempts to push Raravus’s hand from his waist. His arms were too strong, lazily slung around his shoulders while he smoothed the distressed tangles through Su’kata’s ponytail. It was clear he’d been going at whatever coffee antics for a while now, enough to smell faintly of mocha when a kiss was pressed to his cheeks, and he didn’t look too enthused to delve into the details of his failed experiment. Still, Raravus couldn’t help but ask without the slightest restraint of amusement, “How did you manage that? You brew tea like a god.”

 

“That’s the thing! I thought it would be just like using a kettle, but it’s not at all like that. All I did was put the grounds in the pot, then I added boiling water to the reservoir, and then…”

 

Apparently he’d already gone wrong before he got to the part about the chopsticks, because Raravus was already doubling over with poorly stifled laughter, supported by a weak hand against the refrigerator with the other over his mouth. Not at all doubting his own stupidity but unhappy all the same, Su’kata rested his hands at his hips and waited not too patiently to have his mistakes,  _ very  _ plural, explained to him.

 

“Here, just let me show you.”

 

“This junk is cheap anyway, be careful with…”

 

The last words vanished into thin air with Raravus positioned way too close behind him, his arms casually ducked underneath Su’kata’s to guide through the motions. As he dumped the pot, shook a tablespoon of grounds into the filter, pressed his hips in a little closer, all Su’kata could think about was his face nuzzled into his neck, and how he really couldn’t be expected to remember any of this when his brain was short circuiting harder than the machine itself before it nearly caught fire. His cheeks were burning just as hot.

 

Raravus was, of course, aware of all of this. A little deviously, he took his instructions to a whisper, making the methods of brewing coffee a whole lot more captivating to pay attention to- if only Su’kata could gather himself enough to hear the words and not the voice.

 

“The machine is going to heat up the water for you, that’s why you put it in the reservoir. And if you want to grind these down into the filter a little more…”

 

Su’kata shivered underneath his weight as he reached, glancing back to see Raravus doing too good of a job at pretending it was a simple class in coffee 101.

 

“You’re doing this on purpose…” he complained, too lightly to feign any sort of objection.

 

“Doing what on purpose?”

 

Raravus had an uncanny ability to make him feel like the happiest doofus in the world. He loved him for that. It was just that the silence while they waited for the coffee to pour properly this time was so suffocating, needling him to say something,  _ anything,  _ to which he came up with the wise input, “Coffee...sure is good, huh?”

 

“Delicious,” Raravus replied fondly, leaving the sensation of another chaste kiss tingling over Su’kata’s chin. Having gathered enough sanity to finally turn around and kiss back, screw the coffee lesson he hadn’t heard a word of, he’d made the slightest motion to switch position when a buzz caught him out of his racing thoughts. Then from behind him, Raravus said with cruel nonchalance, “It’s ready. Shall we have a cup at the table?”

 

Su’kata couldn’t have pouted harder if he tried, and he really was trying, seated rigidly on the sofa with his arms crossed against his chest, one leg crossed over the other and a frown _ full _ of crossness until Raravus came over with two mugs and set them down at the coffee table, dismantling his distress all over again when he realized just by color that one of them was filled with cream and sugar, just the way he liked it. With the remainder of his bitterness fading, Su’kata brought the steaming mug closer to take in the aroma, a faint smile gracing his cheeks before he’d even had a sip.

 

The taste was perfect. Coffee was a rare indulgence for them, rarer as tea became a daily intake, and with the mood that lingered in the air so worryfree, Su’kata had in less than a minute forgotten about his earlier disappointment. Sipping coffee with Raravus was just as fine as kissing him, although if he had to pick one or the other…

 

“It’s nice, isn’t it?”

 

Su’kata was snapped out of his thoughts again, stumbling to remember if he hadn’t heard him talking until now. Raravus just smiled, then reached over to poke the side of his head. “Are you awake in there?”

 

“It is nice,” Su’kata’s agreement came out in an airy laugh. “Being with you...And the coffee, that’s pretty nice too- Geez, you really vaccuumed that down quick!” He hadn’t expected to look down and see an empty cup next to his modestly sipped own. Raravus seemed just as surprised when he mentioned it and glanced between the two a little absentmindedly.

 

“I guess I was thirsty…? I’ve been so stuck in that book all day, I don’t even think I’ve been outside yet.” Su’kata slid over his mug in an offering, only to be denied by the wave of a hand. “Thank you, really, but I’d have a heart attack if I drank that much sugar,” he teased, getting poked back in return.

 

It was admittedly strange, though. Perhaps lying in fifty different awkward positions to give himself a stiff neck wasn’t helping, but he did feel rather okay despite having his nose buried in a novel all day. It was peaceful, and it was strange. Way too strange to feel comfortable with.

 

Yet beside him, Su’kata hadn’t picked up on the oddity of things simply being okay. Really, Raravus was happy for that. He didn’t like the idea of his partner having to be doubtful every time they had a moment of peace and normalcy to themselves. He just couldn’t shake the feeling, and that was what Su’kata picked up on.

 

“Everything okay…? Did you wanna get back to your book?”

 

“What? Oh, that’s- No, I’m done with it for tonight. I’d like to save at least a chapter for tomorrow, since I’ve been waiting so long and all.” After a moment of thought, he added, “So, do you know how to use the coffee maker now?”

 

Su’kata cracked up at that, shoving Raravus’s grinning face away from his direction with an unmistakable blush. “Your instructions were a little hard, mind giving them to me again?”

 

“Of course,” Raravus set one leg over Su’kata’s lap, resting a hand on his shoulder with a face too devilishly alluring to be legal. He had all of his attention this time around, and he wasn’t going to take that for granted. “You seem so interested in making coffee today…”

 

“I’m interested in you,” Su’kata put all his efforts into making his voice come out seductive. The result was more a hyper-confident squeak. “Teach me something else, will you,  _ professor?” _

 

Raravus’s head felt so light from laughter, he almost thought he’d been drugged. Dotting kisses along his forehead, his cheek, the tip of his nose, he only felt lighter when Su’kata giggled underneath him and kissed back with no sense of the same modesty, only desire and the happiness to pursue it that Raravus so adored. He slid a hand down his chest, felt warmth spread across his back from Su’kata’s, and spoke delicately soft by his ear where strands of white hair were tickling his face.

 

“It’s been so long, Su’kata…”

 

“I know, your whole body is burning,” Su’kata laughed in response. “You’re...trembling.” 

 

“It’s because of what you do to me. You make me feel all  _ sorts _ of things…”

 

“What the hell?”

 

Raravus pulled back, blinking in surprise. “Did I say something wrong?”

 

He must have said something terrible, because Su’kata was frozen where he sat, staring at the two fingers he dragged from his ear with abject horror. His eyes shot back to Raravus, lips moving to say something yet he looked purely unable to. “Wh...Is everything okay? Do I have something on my-”

 

He felt a droplet of something slide over his lip and tasted iron. Bewildered, he brushed the back of his hand under his nose and realized exactly what had scared Su’kata so badly, and what was hardly registering in his brain at all. He’d never gotten a nosebleed before, never had a reason to get one.

 

The reason showed itself when the pain began.

 

It was like someone had flipped a switch. Before his tightly shut eyes were images he couldn’t fully see or make sense of, and distracting as they were, it was the last thing he could think about. All he could understand was the feeling of a spike breaking into the back of his skull, impaling deeper inside with each passing second and driving him insane before he even knew what was happening. He couldn’t feel his own fingers digging into his hair in a helpless search for relief he wasn’t going to get, nor could he feel Su’kata’s grip on both of his shoulders or hear the terrified stammering of Raravus’s name called out again and again.

 

Somehow, the fear was even worse than the pain. It had come all at once this time and he didn’t know how to make it stop, or how to alleviate it in the slightest. No cup of tea or cold pack seemed capable of making the slightest dent- he hadn’t even noticed the one pressed against his forehead yet, held sturdy by shaking fingers. He hadn’t noticed his own knees give, only the pain worsening in the back of his skull after the sound of a platter crashing to the floor with him. It must have been him who accidentally knocked it over, because he could faintly hear Su’kata yelling now, his voice sharply pierced into his head while he couldn’t speak to make him stop. At least, he didn’t think he was speaking. With how raw his throat felt all of a sudden, he might have been yelling himself.

 

Every color and streak of light was unbearable,  _ unimaginable _ , he wanted it to cease so badly if it meant getting knocked out or even...He didn’t know. He just couldn’t fathom his own agony, only how much he wanted it to end. How long it went on, how long it  _ would _ go on, he didn’t know that either, whether it had been seconds or hours or if this was truly hell he had fallen into. And the moment it began to fade, that was its own hell too- all that came back to him was the taste of blood and the sound of Su’kata’s voice, perhaps the most painful thing of all.

 

“...se, _ breathe,  _ Raravus,  _ you’ve got to breathe- _ ”

 

He was beginning to hear it clearly now, the fret and urgency that broke his heart. Gasping for air, he brought a hand up to his chest and clutched tiredly, blinking his eyes to take in his slightly newer surroundings; it wasn’t every day he found himself knelt on the floor by the sofa. Right in front of him was Su’kata, eyes bright with cautious relief once they were met with Raravus’s yet his hair was tangled with distress like he’d seen after the coffee maker incident earlier. He was saying something sort of echoey, maybe about getting up...Raravus nodded at him and tried to push himself up from the couch with one hand, unaware of Su’kata’s expression changing or his insistence on him sitting back down.

 

It was too late anyways. Raravus pushed up, got himself onto one shaking leg, and in one graceless motion fell into Su’kata’s chest instead, unable to feel pain or relief or think any longer.


	2. Chapter 2

It was cold when he woke.

 

The icy cloth against Raravus’s forehead and lack of any covers were one thing, but he woke up because it was cold by his side, where Su’kata was supposed to be. And if one could wake from silence then it was that too which unnerved him like any unusual sound would. Su’kata was always by his side. Where had he gone when Raravus didn’t even remember falling asleep?

 

Recollections came faintly, slowly at that. Too vivid for comfort, he remembered the pain he was feeling not long ago- as far as he knew- and that Su’kata had most definitely been there, the worst pain of any to dwell on. He was so scared and upset...Raravus knew the difference between his frenzy and his genuine terror. Whatever happened to him had Su’kata worried out of his mind. There had to be an apology for it or some reassurance that he was okay, but Su’kata was not here to hear any of it, and Raravus was feeling a lot less okay because of that.

 

Just stretching brought a quiet threat from his aching head to not start moving around, the warning snarl of a dog before it attacked. He relaxed his body as best as he could and stared at the wall instead. When that strained his eyes too much, he closed them and let go of a deep sigh, more uncomfortable than any physical pain could bring them. Su’kata was coming back...It wasn’t like he’d taken all of his stuff with him- not that he exactly had a bunch of his own stuff anyway, but he was coming back. He had no reason to leave. It was Su’kata, he wanted to help.

 

Yet no matter what Raravus reminded himself, he couldn’t focus on anything but his absence and where he could possibly be. Even as the front door opened and closed, he was too lost in his ponderings to actually hear footsteps coming towards him, until the footsteps talked.

 

“You’re awake?”

 

Although Su’kata spoke in a whisper, Raravus was still startled enough to flinch, which caused another unwanted deal of wooziness from the throbbing in his skull. He was standing with a bucket of ice between his hands and another cloth folded into his palm, out of breath like it weighed a million pounds. “I thought you’d be out for a while, are you...Are you okay?”

 

By now Raravus wasn’t dumb enough to nod, but even piping up with the slightest “Mhm” for an answer reminded him how raw his throat felt. “A little achy, that’s all…” he mumbled, still hardly able to take in the relief of seeing Su’kata here when his eyes kept forcing themselves closed.

 

“No, I mean-”

 

They opened again. Su’kata was biting his lip, unsure of what to say. “You looked a little zoned just now,” he finished after some hesitance. “It must have been really scary for you earlier, especially waking up all of a sudden…”

 

“I didn’t know where you were.”

 

Raravus’s face was already starting to heat up from embarrassment, not at all the kind he didn’t mind feeling around Su’kata’s forward charm. He saw the surprised flicker in his face and looked away from it. “I was just a little disoriented for a second, that’s all.”

 

The bed depressed with a creak, gently so as to not move him. Then Su’kata’s hand was over his own, a little cold from the bucket, but his eyes were all warmth, gesturing with a slight look towards the glass of water he set out on the nightstand some time before. Raravus drank, so distracted by the relief to his parched throat he almost didn’t hear him.

 

“I was getting ice from the neighbors,” he said. “We ran out. I thought you’d stay asleep while I went to get it, but then the stingy bastards wanted ‘something in return’, like frozen water was so expensive…”

 

“We ran out of ice?” Raravus asked, wiping droplets from his lips. “How?”

 

Now that he thought about it, the cloth at his forehead was  _ really  _ icy cold, and the missing covers weren’t helping. He raised a curious eyebrow at Su’kata.

 

“Your fever, I’ve been trying to bring it down for hours.” Perhaps it wasn’t the smartest idea to try and freeze him, but now that Raravus was awake, he began to realize where he went wrong. “I thought- I don’t know what I was thinking, I wasn’t really thinking anything…”

 

He’d been too tired to take everything in fully, but Raravus began to see the wear in Su’kata’s posture alone clear as day. His voice was broken down by nerves, his eyes darting with frantic need to do  _ something,  _ even though Raravus was awake now. However many hours it had been, it couldn’t have been easy for him. Not when he was facing them all alone.

 

“Thank you,” he spoke into the heavy quiet. “It could have gotten a lot worse without you here.”

 

“Where else would I be?” It didn’t take long for Su’kata’s tension to ease by the reassured grin at his cheeks. He couldn’t imagine leaving him be, and as much as the irrational fear intruded his comfort, Raravus couldn’t imagine it either. There was no need to.

 

Nor was there a need to talk or rehash the obvious; even Su’kata embraced the second silence that came over them without anything left unsaid, for the best solution to calm both their worries was rest, uninterrupted. By morning they would accept it, that Raravus’s migraines and the aftereffects of them had, for a fact, gotten worse.

 

A little tentatively, Su’kata laid himself onto the mattress like he was uncertain whether it was allowed, though he scooted in closer once Raravus’s arm came around his shoulder. The position was sort of reversed from how they normally slept, but it was comfy, even if he felt a little smaller than normal. And even if, he started to realize, Raravus was going to be the equivalent of an enormous radiator for the rest of the night. He was already sweating without the covers.

 

Unfortunately, there wasn’t any time to adjust. Su’kata could literally hear Raravus fall asleep mid-sentence, a mumbled out “ _ I’m happy you’re here…” _ before the lightest sighs of slumber, and to scoot away from his scalding vine-like grip and wake him up all over again would have been just immoral. The poor thing was exhausted. All Su’kata could do was lie awake, think, wonder, and eventually close his eyes when he knew he wouldn’t come to any answers tonight. They’d face their problems in the morning.

 

Raravus was getting worse.

 

With the sinking feeling of helplessness, he told himself to think of nothing and within the hour fell restlessly asleep.


End file.
